A More Complete Scope For Advances in Women's Health

By Jennifer Dennis-Wall, Ph.D.

When people think about women’s health, especially during the month of October, they may think only of breast cancer or reproductive disorders. The truth, though, is that women’s health encompasses so much more. The field of medicine pertaining to women’s health is rapidly growing to include the study of both specific conditions that only manifest in women and also maintenance of well-being and quality of life during the unique but normal life cycles experienced by women. Fortunately, we are beginning to understand the implications of women-specific needs on mental and emotional health, and new devices are being designed to cater to these needs.

One of our goals in writing this article was to push back on some of the stigma surrounding women’s health. If discussions of reproductive health upset you, this may not be the article for you. However, it’s important to move past this discomfort if we really plan on bettering the lives of patients that make up more than half of the world’s population – women.